Padless crown cap



Aug. 24, 1943. w. PUNTE 2,327,455

PADLESS CROWN CAP Filed Sept. 19, 1940 Patented Aug. 24, 1943 PADLESS CROWN CAP William F. Punte, Syracuse, N. Y., assignor to Continental Can Company, Inc., New York, N. Y., a. corporation of New York Application September 19, 1940, Serial No. 357,472

e 2 Claims. .The invention relates generally to closure devices of the crown cap type and primarily seeks to provide a novel form of crown cap closure capable of effecting a satisfactory liquid and gas tight seal and also of protecting sealed contents of a container to which the novel closure cap is applied from direct contact with the metal of the cap without inclusion of the usual cork or similar yieldable sealing pads.

Crown caps having crown or body portions and depending, crimped skirt portions adapted to be bent into intimate contact with neck portions of bottles, cans or similar containers for effecting a sealing attachment are well known,

but in the conventional forms of such caps it is necessary to include sealing pads of, cork or similar yieldable material. In addition, it has been found desirable to cover the cork pads with center spots in order toavoid direct contact between beverages in the containers and the cork, or the metal of the caps through the small openings in the cork. Obviously, the inclusion of cork pads and center spots of aluminum foil or treated paper adds materially to the manufacturing cost of the caps, and the provision of a crown cap such as is herein disclosed and which is capable of effecting a proper liquid and gas tight seal without inclusion of sealing pads and center spots will not only materially decrease the cost of manufacturing the caps but will also materially decrease the amount of metal neces* sary to be used since the cap skirts can be made shorter. It has been noted also, in the use of some forms-of crown caps, that outward bending of the caps occasioned by internal pressure within the sealed containers, tends to lift annular portions of the caps and sometimes permits objectionable leakages of the sealed products or gases therein.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention not only to provide a padless crown cap that can be manufactured at low cost, but also a cap of the nature stated which will effect a more efficient and positive ,seal than has heretofore been provided. e

In its more detailed nature, the invention re.-

sides in the provision of a crown cap comprising ing mouth, and an intervening upwardly directed hinge groove which facilitates upward bulging of said depressed portion under internal pressure without disturbing the seal, and a sealing annulus. surrounding said ribs and merging into the crimped skirt and which is deformed during application of the cap to conform to the shape of the container neck and intimately press the sealing compound into efficient sealing contact with said neck.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel crown cap of the character stated including a novel securing skirt crimped so that when it is afiixed to the neck of a container the wall portions'of the skirt crimping lie nearly radial to the axis of the cap thereby to provide a maximum of rigidity in said skirt and increased sealing eflicincy. v

. With the above and other objects. in View that will hereinafter appear, the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by followingthe detailed description, the appended claims, and the several views illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

I In the drawingv s Figure 1 is a plan view of the improved crown D.

Figure 2 is a central vertical cross section of the cap shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a central vertical cross section of the cap afiixed to a bottle, a condition of the cap under normal sealed internal pressure being 11- lustrated.

' Figure 4"is a view similar to Figure 3 and showing the cap bulged upwardly by a greater than normal sealed'internal pressure.

Figure 5 is a horizontal cross section the line 5--5 on Figure 3.

The improved crown cap forming the basis 01' the present invention includes the usual generally flat top and depending skirt which is utilized in the usual manner to securely clamp the cap to the mouth of the bottle or other container. The topis-provided with two annularly spaced upstanding ribs, the innermost of which is designated 5 and the outermost of which is designated 6. These ribs define an inner crown body portion I and .the outer or surrounding neck engaging or sealing portion 8, the central body portion I, being depressed slightly below the plane of the outer portion 8 in the manner clearly illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawing.

The outer or sealing portion '8 of the crown top turns rather sharply as at 9 into the securing skirt In which is crimped in a novel manner so that when the cap is afilxed to the pouring neck taken on" of 'a bottle or other container the side walls of the skirt crimps are disposed so as to closely approach a radialrelation to the center of the crown cap, thereby to impart rigidity to the skirt and provide a greater security of attachment of the cap.

It is customary to provide sealing pads of cork or other suitable compressible material in crown caps of the usual type, but it is a purpose of the present invention to provide a crown cap which will effect an efficient seal without such sealing pad inserts. For this reason the improved cap herein disclosed has the whole of its internal crown top surface coated with an odorless and tasteless sealing compound i2. This compound fills the grooves formed at the underside of the annular rib 5, 6 and merges into the securing skirt If! in the manner best illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawing.

When the cap is applied to the neck of a bottle or other container in the manner illustrated in Figure 3 of the drawing, the sealing portion 8 of the crown top and the turn thereof at 9 into the skirt H) are reshaped or deformed as at l3 to conform perfectly to the sealing surface presented by the neck [A of the bottle or other container and to spread and reshape the engaged portion of the sealing compound so as to addi-' tionally assure the provision of a perfect seal.

It will be observed by reference to Figures 2 and 3 of the drawing that the central slightly depressed crown body portion 1 is of a diameter for fitting within the pouring throat in the container neck it so that the fillet i which adjoins this central portion with the innermost rib 5 is depressed slightly in the pouring throat in a manner for aiding the provision of an eificient seal. It should be obvious also that deformation of the metal of the cap at [3, or the drawing of this-metal over the sealing surface of the container neck I4 tends to spread the ribs 5 and 6. slightly and by this means press the sealing compound contained in the grooves formed by the ribs tightly against the container neck so as to additionally facilitate the sealing function,

When a container sealed by one of the improved crown caps herein disclosed contains a normal amount of internal pressure, say a pressure of about sixty pounds per square inch, the central crown portion 1 will retain the fiat condition illustrated in Figure 3. -When abnormal internal pressures, such as one hundred thirty pounds per square inch are sealed by the improved crown caps, the central portions 1 thereof may bow upwardly under this abnormal internal pressure in the manner indicated at 16 in Figure 4 of the drawing. When this upwardbowing of the central portion of the crown cap takes place, the annular groove formed between the upstanding ribs 5 and 6 acts as a hinge as indicated by the arrows I! on Figure 4, and the seal effected by the crown cap throughout the areas indicated by the arrows J3 on Figure 4 are in no wise affected by this upward bowing of the crown cap, and a perfect seal is retained despite the abnormal internal pressure seeking to break said seal.

It is to be understood that the specific details of construction and the dimensions of the improved cap may be altered to suit conditions of different uses without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A metal closure cap for sealing the neck of a bottle, can or like container comprising a crown body portion and a depending container mouth gripping skirt p'ortion, two upstanding integral annular ribs dividing the non-applied crown body portion into a generally flat central body portion of a diameter substantially coextensive with that of the pouring throat in the container mouth and a surrounding generally flat sealing portion deformable during applica: tion of the cap to conform to the shape ofthe container mouth and merging into said skirt portion, said ribs providing downwardly directed sealing compound receiving grooves disposed to lie above the sealing lip of a bottle when attached thereto and forming between them a hinge groove permitting upward bulging of said central body portion under ,abnormal sealed pressure conditions without disturbing sealing contact of said surrounding sealing portion, and a sealing compound permanently adhered in and filling said downwardly directed grooves and covering said surrounding sealing portion and merging into said skirt portion.

2. A metal closure cap for sealing the neck of a bottle, can or like container comprising a crown body portion and a depending container mouth gripping skirt portion, two upstanding integral annularribs dividing the non-applied crown body portion into a generally fiat central body portion of a diameter substantially coextensive with that of the pouring throat in the container mouth and a surrounding generally flat sealing portion deformable during application of the cap to conform to the shape of the container mouth and merging into said skirt portion, said ribs providing downwardly directed sealing compound receiving grooves disposed to lie above the sealing lip of a bottle when attached thereto and forming between them a hinge groove permitting upward bulging of said central body portion under abnormal sealed pressure conditions without disturbing sealing contact of said surrounding sealing portion, and a sealing compound permanently adhered in and filling said downwardly directed grooves and covering said surrounding sealing portion and said central body portion and merging into said skirt portion, said central body portion being depressed slightly below thelevel of said surrounding sealing portion so as to fit into the pouring throat of the container mouth,

skirt and provide great security of attachment of said cap.

WILLIAM F. PUNIE. 

